“It is obvious Jordan is the best putter in the world,” says Haney, who also coached Mark O’Meara to two major championship wins. “And he has been for the last two years. It’s not like he is in the middle of a hot streak. He’s just the best putter.”John Huggan is commenting on Hank Haney’s thoughts on who’s the best of the latest big three; Spieth, McIlroy or Day?

Big threes of the pastJohn writes, “A Fascinating aspect of golf throughout history has always been the various rivalries at the sharp end of the game. Oddly, those battles for supremacy have often enough come along not as mere head-to-heads but between groups of three. Over a century ago the “Great Triumvirate” of Harry Vardon, JH Taylor and James Braid ruled. The American trio of Sam Snead, Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson – all born in 1912 – dominated the 1940s and 50s. And, more recently, the so-called “Big Three” of Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer amassed an amazing 34 Grand Slam titles.”

Jordan SpiethHank Haney goes for Spieth as his number 1 and is quoted as saying, “I think Jordan will wind up with the best record of the three. He has that internal motivation that is second to none right now. He has had no issues with his body. And he is best in putting, the part of the game that is hardest to improve. When you get to your 30s, you don’t normally become a great putter.”

Hank considers that Spieth’s only downside is that he’s not long off the tee. Something that other experts have commented on and suggesting that it could be a potential Achilles Heel should his putting statistics deteriorate.At the moment he’s managing to compete with the long hitters when playing par-5s. For instance when the long hitters are more frequently on the greens for two, Spieth compensates by single -putting the par-5s and ends up with a birdie.

As for the also-rans“Rickie (Fowler) isn’t anywhere near the class of the other three,” says Haney. “He has to win a major to be up there with them. Actually, he just has to improve. Statistically, the top three are on a whole different level from anyone else. It’s not even close. They are head and shoulders better than the rest.

“But Rickie is on a trajectory to get close to the top. He has shown that he can handle the moment. That’s a great trait. His problem is getting to the moment. If he gets there though, he can handle it. But so can the big three. So even that doesn’t give him an edge. It just puts him on their level.”